Press Release - March 26, 1998

A new Secretary General for the International Council of Museums

A citizen of the Netherlands, Manus Brinkman, 48 years old, was
appointed Secretary General of ICOM by the ICOM Executive Council
on March 26, 1998. Mr. Brinkman succeeds a French woman,
Elisabeth des Portes, who was Secretary General from 1991 to the
end of 1997.

With a social and cultural background, including a Doctorandus in
International Relations from the University of Amsterdam, Manus
Brinkman was director of the Dutch Museums Association since
1990. He worked at the Tropenmuseum for ten years where he was
the director of the Children's Museum. His work was notably
focused on highly innovative programs concerning developing
countries, racial minorities and disadvantaged communities.

Manus Brinkman is also very involved in European and
international cultural activities. He has worked with NEMO
(Network of European Museum Organisations) since its
establishment in 1990, and has been its Chairperson since 1995.
Since the first debate on the UNIDROIT convention, Manus Brinkman
has been an avid promoter of this main tool in the fight against
the illicit traffic in cultural property.

As head of the ICOM Secretariat, Manus Brinkman will be
responsible for managing the 14.000 institutional and individual
members of ICOM around the world.  One of his first priorities is
to manage the most important event in ICOM's calendar: the
General Conference which will be held in Melbourne (Australia) on
9-16 October 1998.

He will also be in charge of the promotion of museums as
"institutions in the service of society and its development"
(ICOM Statutes - Art. 2).

As ICOM is an organisation of the guardians of our common
heritage, Mr Brinkman intends to develop an active and dynamic
policy for the promotion of equality of all cultures.


Information: Valerie Jullien
Tel.: (33.1) 47.34.05.00
Fax: (33.1) 43.06.78.62
Email:  [log in to unmask]